Gold miner AngloGold Ashanti last week announced that its chairperson, Tito Mboweni, had stepped down and would not stand for re-election as nonexecutive director at the company’s annual general meeting in May, owing to his increasing portfolio and professional commitments.

Mboweni, who has been chairperson since June 2010, will be replaced by Sipho Pityana, who has been a nonexecutive director of AngloGold Ashanti for the past seven years, as well as the chairperson of the company’s safety, health and environment committee.

To ensure a smooth transition, Mboweni will work closely with Pityana over the coming months.

Mboweni’s decision to step down came after a period of sustained improvement from AngloGold Ashanti, which had rebased its cost structure in response to a dramatically lower gold price, while improving the quality of its asset base with the commissioning of two new gold mines, as well as disposing of selected assets, the miner said.

“Mboweni has overseen the transition of leadership at AngloGold during a challenging business environment,” CEO Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan (Venkat) said.

“I leave AngloGold Ashanti as a fundamentally stronger, stable and focused business. It has been a privilege to help establish such a firm foundation for the company alongside an accomplished executive team and an experienced board, all of who continue to work diligently in the best interests of the business. I am pleased that Pityana is succeeding me in this role and I wish him the very best,” Mboweni commented.

“Pityana, in addition to leading our safety and sustainability focus on the board with distinction, has a deep understanding of all other aspects of the business. He is fully supportive of our strategy to generate growth in free cash flow, as we continue to lift the company’s performance, and brings to the role considerable broad experience and vision,” Venkat added.

Meanwhile, AngloGold Ashanti also announced that Professor Wiseman Nkuhlu, who had served on the company’s board since August 2006 and was currently chairperson of its audit and corporate governance committee, would assume the new role of lead independent director of the board.